around campus

APPLAUSE

Economics professor G. Rod Erfani received the 2012 Distinguished Advisor Award from the Executive Board of international economics honor society Omicron Delta Epsilon, one of the world’s largest academic honor societies. Erfani was recognized for his longtime service as Transylvania’s ODE Chapter Advisor at the annual meeting of the American Economic Association in Chicago in December. He was one of 672 potential honorees.

Sophomore Zoe Snider had her Foundations of the Liberal Arts paper, “Vampires, Werewolves, and Oppression: Twilight and Female Gender Stereotypes,” accepted for publication in the spring 2012 edition of Young Scholars in Writing. Mathematics and computer science professor emeritus James E. Miller has published Elementary Theory & Application of Numerical Analysis (Mineola: Dover Publications), a completely revised edition of a classic 1967 text by David G. Moursund and Charles S. Duris. The book is designed as a text for an undergraduate course (junior/senior level) in modern numerical analysis. It also covers some of the basic concepts from elementary calculus, with emphasis on theory and proofs.Kenan Visiting Writer Richard Taylor did an interview for the TV show Ghost Hunters, which aired on the Sci-Fi channel. The interview relates to the history of Buffalo Trace Distillery, where there are alleged to have been a number of ghost sightings. Located on the banks of the Kentucky River in Frankfort, the distillery is one of the three oldest and continuously operating distilleries in the United States. Taylor is the author of the book The Great Crossing: Historic Journey to Buffalo Trace Distillery.

The invitation to the inauguration of R. Owen Williams as president of Transylvania received an Award of Excellence in a competition sponsored by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education District III. The judges called the invitation “a piece of artwork.” It was the work of the Transylvania publications office: Martha Baker, director; Bill Bowden, writer/editor; Barbara Grinnell, designer; and Tyler Young, editorial assistant.

The inauguration event earned a Special Merit Award in the competition. The judges commented that, although a presidential inauguration is not a unique or new event in and of itself, Transylvania took this as an opportunity to showcase the entire university. They added: “The event generated materials still being used six months later, including the new president’s inauguration speech and a DVD of the Civil War Symposium.” In addition to the publications staff, those recognized were Sarah Emmons, associate vice president of communications; Mariana Shochat, web development manager; Mollie Eblen, public relations associate; and Kelly Lavy, events coordinator.

CASE District III includes nine states in the southeast U.S.

The Rambler, Transylvania’s student newspaper, had its best showing ever in the Kentucky Intercollegiate Press Association’s awards competition. The yearly competition features a variety of categories designed to showcase the talent of student journalists. The Rambler staff brought home 30 awards, including 11 first-place honors, and—for the third year in a row—first place for senior John Johnson in the deadline copy editing competition. Johnson bested copy editors from both the large- and small-school divisions.